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Athlete Interview

This week we caught up with Harry Markotay, a junior at Chowan University who plays baseball and is looking at breaking into the strength and conditioning field when he graduates. You can follow him on Twitter @harrym0013 to see all the talk about him hitting nukes all day long for his #dirtybirds. Enjoy our Q & A with him!

LPT: Thanks for linking up with us, Harry! Can you tell us a little about yourself?

Harry: I currently am an outfielder at Chowan University. I also play first base. I have actually played first base since my junior year of high school all the way up until this year and I played two years at first base at St. Charles Community College and played first/third base in my summer league.

LPT: You stated you wanted to enter the Strength and Conditioning field. What has made you interested in this field? What is your ultimate goal in regards to the impact you can have?

Harry: The reason I wanted to enter the Strength and Conditioning field was because of how much strength and conditioning training as helped me develop as a player and an individual. It has helped me improve both mentally and physically. As a freshman in high school I was weak, slow, and had trouble swinging a -3 bat. By the time of my sophomore season I had started strength training at my high school and on my own. This helped my performance as a player greatly. When I was a senior I was one of the strongest guys on my team and my training had helped me earn an athletic scholarship to play baseball.

The ultimate goal that I hope I can have is to help other athletes and individuals realize that working out can have a huge impact on their athletic performance and in their daily lives like it has for me. I feel like a lot of younger athletes don’t realize that strength and conditioning training plays a huge part in them continuing their athletic careers and that most people can’t just get by relying on their natural talent.

LPT: What type of training do you do in the off-season to improve as a player and what are some of the best exercises you’ve done that have had an effect on your performance?

Harry: The training I do in the off season consists of strength, agility, and speed training. Since I do enjoy working my routine during the week is Chest/Triceps/Core, Legs, and Back/Biceps/Core. I also train with a strength coach. I will workout three days a week with him and most weeks the split is Upper Body/Core/Lower Body Plyometrics and Agility, Lower Body/Upper Body Plyometrics/Core, and Full Body/Speed and Agility/Core. The workouts I feel like have had a huge impact on my performance include band resistant sprints, sled pulls, deadlift, back squat, core and forearm exercises, and battle ropes. I am an athlete who enjoys doing bench press and I’ve never had any problems because of it. I always make sure to warm up properly and stretch after a workout to keep my flexibility.

LPT: Do you have a strength and conditioning coach now? What type of impact has that person had on you?

Harry: Like I said I do have a strength and conditioning coach who has made a huge impact on my life. He trains out of Athletic Republic STL and also trains people out of his home. He doesn’t just keep up with my athletic career but he has also helped me stay on top of my school work and has helped me attain an internship at Athletic Republic STL.

LPT: What issues or negative things do you see in regards to working out and people in baseball?

Harry: Some negative things I see when it comes to people working out and playing baseball is that they are afraid lifting will injure them. Ive had teammates who don’t work out because they are afraid of being too tight or too big to swing a bat or pitch. I think that if more coaches at younger levels encouraged training and educated their players then athletes would understand the benefits it has on their performance.

LPT: Thanks so much for your time, Harry. Looking forward to following your career at Chowan and beyond! Next time you’re in Phoenix, let’s hit the batting cages and the gym together!